Latest United Nations News
Barcelona subway recycles energy from braking into power to charge electric cars
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The Barcelona subway grinds to a halt, the doors slide open and commuters pour out to go about their daily business. Little do they know that as they do so, a burst of energy is sent up to street level to help charge an electric car. Barcelona...
Pharrell Williams is named a UNESCO goodwill ambassador
PARIS (AP) — Pop star and fashion designer Pharrell Williams was named UNESCO’s goodwill ambassador for artistic education and entrepreneurship on Tuesday in Paris, continuing his cultural dominance of the French capital as Louis Vuitton menswear artistic director and performer at Notre Dame...
Middle East latest: Israel plans an extended occupation of Syrian buffer zone
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli troops will occupy a buffer zone inside Syria for the foreseeable future. Israel’s recent capture of the buffer zone has sparked condemnation, with critics accusing Israel of violating the 1974 ceasefire and possibly exploiting the chaos in...
UN announces initiative to overcome political deadlock in Libya
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The top U.N. official in Libya announced a new initiative Monday to overcome a three-year deadlock and move the divided oil-rich North African nation toward a national election. The U.N. deputy special envoy for Libya, Stephanie Koury, told the U.N. Security...
Palestinian security forces launch a rare crackdown on militants in the West Bank
JENIN, West Bank (AP) — Palestinian security forces have launched a rare crackdown against local militant groups in the northern West Bank, sending in armored cars and engaging in fierce gunbattles that have killed at least two people in the volatile area. The raid marks an unusual...
Can U.N. summits save the planet? A faltering year of talks brings up questions about the process
The world's nations keep faltering in their efforts to join together to save the planet from several environmental crises. In the past few months United Nations-sponsored negotiations to tackle climate change, plastic pollution, loss of global species and a growing number of deserts...
Christians in Syria mark country's transformation with tears as UN envoy urges an end to sanctions
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — In churches across long-stifled Syria, Christians marked the first Sunday services since the collapse of Bashar Assad 's government in an air of transformation. Some were in tears. Others clasped their hands in prayer. “They are promising us that government...
UN talks fail to reach agreement on dealing with rising risk of global drought
BENGALURU, India (AP) — Despite two weeks of U.N.-sponsored talks in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh, the participating 197 nations failed to agree early Saturday on a plan to deal with global droughts, made longer and more severe by a warming climate. The biennial talks, known as COP 16...
Fighting in eastern Congo between army and rebels intensifies ahead of peace talks Sunday
GOMA, Congo (AP) — Fighting between the Congolese army and the M23 rebel group intensified in eastern Congo in recent days ahead of much anticipated peace talks on Sunday, the army said. Congo's army accused the M23 of killing 12 civilians earlier this week in villages of the...
Middle East latest: Syrians celebrate Assad's fall as US seeks a peaceful political transition
Thousands of Syrians gathered in Damascus’ main square and a historic mosque for the first Muslim Friday prayers since former President Bashar Assad was overthrown, a major symbolic moment for the country’s dramatic change of power. The rebels are now working to establish security and start a...
